City planning street observation memo assignment - Instructions Attached

· Explore the urban corridor via “street view” on GoogleMaps or GoogleEarth.

· Observe the following urban corridors in Eugene, Oregon: 

· ****E. 8th Avenue from Hilyard to Pearl Streets ****

· When observing, consider the urban design principles identified above, as well as in readings and lectures, and think about how they relate to site and building design. It might again be helpful for you to format a sheet with these principles to help guide your observation. 

· Identify one or two principles listed on the next page and the ways in which they are used or neglected in your observation area.

· Then, using observational data, reflect on how the urban design of the area affected your experience and perceptions. What were the area’s positive aspects of design (think strengths and opportunities)? What could improve (think weaknesses and threats)? 

PURPOSE 

The purpose of this assignment is three-fold. You should be able to:

1. Practice clear, concise and technical memo writing style; 

2. Think critically and analyze urban design issues in current day scenarios. 

3. Learn to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and problems to provide action-oriented solutions as needed. 

BACKGROUND

Design may have significant impacts on the visual and spatial character of a community, as well as on local and regional transportation systems and environmental conditions. Community appearance can improve by adopting detailed plans and processes that establish policies that address the physical design, scale, and form of a community as they relate to visual impacts of development. These features can be consistent with several or all of the following seven urban design principles: 

1. Accessibility: Refers to the ability for residents of all levels of mobility to effectively, affordably, and safely reach destinations they value, such as workplaces, hospitals, homes, and shopping centers. 

2. Sense of Place: People develop a "sense of place" through experience and knowledge of a particular area. A sense of place emerges through knowledge of the history, geography and geology of an area, its flora and fauna, the legends of a place, and a growing sense of the land and its history after living there for a time.

3. Public Space: A social space that is generally open and accessible to people, or is otherwise created for the purpose of supporting a wide variety of general public uses. 

4. Human Scale: The size, texture and articulation of physical elements that match the size and proportions of human sight and speed. In other words, matching the design of a place to the ability of humans to integrate, access, and experience an urban setting.

5. Safety: Does the area demonstrate adequate safety measures? Is the safety of the area affected by neighboring areas or uses? 

6. Sustainability: Is the area designed in a way that supports a diversity of uses and populations on a long-term timeframe?

7. Integration with Nature: Have natural systems or features been incorporated into the urban setting (such as trees or other vegetation, natural terrain, bioswales, etc.)? 

These seven principles are not mutually exclusive; they may reinforce one another. For example, policies to address accessibility can also help to achieve sustainability goals. In addition, human scale and accessibility may both be considered in the design and size of a parking area. Overall, detailed planning processes that allow close attention to these types of qualities ensure a community’s special character.